I was at the park with Emily (sister), Ryan (brother-in-law), and Meghan (girlfriend). For context, everyone was in town for my birthday, which we spent at Medieval Times on Saturday night. We also stayed up late playing games with lots of laughter. So getting to the park early Sunday morning, I was already a little tired and losing my voice. When I\u2019m with family, the paths I take around the park and the rides I go on also changes a bit. I hope to do a more thorough visit next time, so this really is just a preview of the season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rides<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Since we started out by heading into Medieval Faire to pick up our media day package from All\u2019s Well Hall, my first ride of the season ended up being Dragon Fyre. We then moved on to Spinovator, which was barrels of fun for everyone! Having warmed up a bit, we hopped on Leviathan next, then back to another classic ride, Viking\u2019s Rage. Emily and Ryan hadn\u2019t been to the park since AlpenFury was added, so we took a look around Alpine Outfitters and the AlpenFest plaza, which has brought back the overhead bunting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n We didn\u2019t end up riding AlpenFury though, partly because I didn\u2019t think riding on an empty stomach was the best idea. Plus even with the single-use Fast Lane vouchers provided by the park, I was a little concerned about how long the line would take. Instead, we said hello to Herman on Thunder Run before heading back to All\u2019s Well Hall for lunch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n After lunch, we were stuffed and wishing there was a show (outside of the kids\u2019 park) we could sit and watch for a while, but of course those don\u2019t start until June. So we walked over to The Grande World Exposition of 1890 to get a ride on Antique Carrousel with its freshly painted horses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With Psyclone, Sledge Hammer, and Backlot Stunt Coaster all closed, we then got in line for Behemoth. Parker spotted me and sang happy birthday as the train returned to the station, which took me by surprise since I was waving to a couple other \u201chome park homies\u201d I saw in line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The line for Yukon Striker seemed a bit long, so we went past it to grab a ride on Tundra Twister instead. The exhaustion was really setting in by this point so we got just one more ride in before Emily and Ryan had to start their long drive back home. Since Medieval Faire was sort of on the way, we ended up on the 1981 original, Wilde Knight Mares! It seems to have had the centre hub cap repainted or replaced during the off-season, so the button\u2019s red colour really popped!<\/p>\n\n\n\n After Emily and Ryan left, Meghan went to rest in the car while I did one final lap to gather footage. During this time, I grabbed a ride on my favourite ride, Wilde Beast, where I happened to be sat right next to Parker! That brought my total rides at 10 for the day, which is certainly above average for me. I think it’s also interesting to note 70 per cent of the rides I did opened with the park in 1981 (depending on how you count Thunder Run, I suppose). They remain classics for a reason!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Food<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n We arrived about 15 minutes before our scheduled meal time but they let us in right away. Although the mealtime was only meant to be 45 minutes, no one was ushering us out to let the next group in. I think this was because the park had five different meal times you could choose from (compared with the two or three in previous years). There was also the option of taking a single-meal-deal voucher instead of the samplings buffet, which I\u2019m sure worked better for some invitees and meant more space for those who chose the buffet. I heard there were still some issues with people finding seating, but overall I think this was a huge improvement over the stricter one-hour limit I\u2019ve experienced at media days in the past. I can\u2019t thank the team at Canada\u2019s Wonderland enough for making these changes!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now onto the food reviews which, in standard Wonderland Weekly fashion, will be placed on “Toronto Ty’s Tier List.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Click on the name of each item below to read my full review.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: B<\/p>\n\n\n\n I enjoyed this pretty well. I mean, I\u2019m a fan of beef and this was basically just ground beef turned into a kabob, with lots of spices and a very sweet sauce. It was far from juicy and seems odd to call it donair when that\u2019s typically served more as a wrap as far as I understand, but still good for a beef kabob. The sauce was a hardened sweet-but-garlicky drizzle that broke off in pieces. It was good, but I found there wasn\u2019t enough of it to fully appreciate the flavours. But I want to emphasize that this donair is a spicy option, one that stays in your mouth for several minutes after, so if you have a low spice tolerance, probably stick to something else. I\u2019d get it again, but I\u2019m shocked this has completely replaced the beef brisket at Lazy Bear Lodge due to the spiciness. It\u2019s not too spicy for me, but it will definitely be a problem for many guests. At the very least, it needs a \u201cspicy\u201d symbol on the menu to ensure people are informed before ordering.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: A<\/p>\n\n\n\n My family ended up visiting Medieval Times on Saturday for my birthday and I have to say, this drumstick tasted nearly identical to the chicken we had there. I think it\u2019s quite tasty, though I\u2019ll have to see how many drumsticks they give you at the Lodge before I can say if it\u2019s \u201cworth it.\u201d Still, this is certainly a more mild option than the donair so it should satisfy a wider range of guests.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: B\u2028<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s white rice with some chickpeas and carrots. Very mild which paired well with the donair. I wish we had naan bread at the Lodge instead of the usually-stale ciabatta roll so I could make a more proper donair out of the kabob, rice, and naan\/pita.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: A<\/p>\n\n\n\n I was a bit concerned about this one when I heard it was going to have KD cheese sauce. (I’m really not a fan of Kraft Dinner…) But my goodness, this is a huge improvement over standard, barely-melted cheese slices! It wasn’t a lot of cheese, but that’s exactly how I like it, and the pickles were a great feature! I still miss the days when Coasters Drive-In had a condiment bar so you could customize your burger, though. Not everyone’s a fan of pickles. And I’d love to add tomato and a bit of lettuce.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: B<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2028This veggie version of the above option was quite good in its own right, seemingly with a slight spicy kick to it. (Though I\u2019ll admit my mouth was still kind of tingling from the donair.) Not too severe, though, so I think the vast majority of people won\u2019t have a problem tolerating this level of spice.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: B<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now I\u2019m not the biggest fan of sweet chili Thai flavour, but I\u2019ll definitely be getting this again! I love popcorn chicken and fresh cut fries. Similar to the donair kabob, this is a sweet and spicy combo, though the sheer amount of sauce made it sweeter than the former option and a lot more mild in terms of spice. Hopefully there\u2019s a BBQ (or sauceless) version of these chicken bites also available once Mess Hall opens.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: S<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2028This is by far my favourite thing we tried! Granted, I\u2019m a huge fan of Montreal smoked meat, shawarma, and naan bread so\u2026 yeah, this was made for me! The pickled radish was a fantastic garnish (coming from someone who would never choose to add that) with the flavour pairing perfectly with the meat! The naan was perfectly soft and pliable, so it worked great as a wrap! I\u2019m even more excited for Celebration Canada to return this July so I can eat this again! (Hopefully as a much larger serving size, though.)<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: A<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2028Essentially an open-faced chicken wrap, with just a bit of chipotle sauce. Probably serving it this way is easier than a proper wrap so the food line can move faster. It was good and I\u2019ll almost certainly get it again.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: F\u2028<\/p>\n\n\n\n I don\u2019t give out this rating unless something is really objectively wrong with the item\u2026 and this was just wrong. Kraft Dinner is one of the easiest possible things to cook yet the members of my group who tried it agreed it was too watery. Then there\u2019s the cone. Instead of being a bread cone of some kind like most places seem to use, this is full on an ice cream sugar cone. That does not go well with mac and cheese so everyone in my group just ate the cone separately\u2026 and didn\u2019t eat much of the mac and cheese. This really feels like a failure to understand what this item is even supposed to be.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Guest Taste Tier: C<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2028I generally don\u2019t eat pork so I relied on Emily and Ryan to give me the scoop. Apparently pork chops get tough pretty quickly if they get cold and that\u2019s exactly what happened here.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: F<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2028I was so excited to try this! I love fruit and I love candy, with this seemingly being a more manageable take on the traditional candy apple. It\u2019s apparently a popular treat elsewhere, but I don\u2019t think Wonderland\u2019s figured out how to make this properly yet. Each of us found the candy practically glued our teeth together and didn\u2019t dissolve in any reasonable time frame. So we ended up finishing the fruit and picking our teeth, swallowing whole globs of the candy coating separately. You can\u2019t really enjoy the fruit because you\u2019re trying not to pull your fillings out. And then you\u2019re sticking your finger in your mouth to clean your teeth which is the opposite of a manageable handheld treat. Hopefully the park can figure out the proper way to make this before Sweet Spot opens.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Guest Taste Tier: B<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2028I\u2019m told this was under-baked, but was otherwise good and tart. I\u2019m not a fan of lemon bars so I didn\u2019t bother trying it.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Guest Taste Tier: A<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2028I skipped this option as well since it seemed like a lot of chocolate (which I\u2019m not the biggest fan of). I\u2019m told it was good for what it is, but not really special.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Guest Taste Tier: B<\/p>\n\n\n\n I kind of filled up on the main course and the cake didn\u2019t look too appealing to me, so I didn\u2019t try this one either. Besides, I still had plenty of birthday cake at home, which Meghan made from scratch. I\u2019m told the park\u2019s cake was good for what it is, but nothing special.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Guest Taste Tier: C\u2028<\/p>\n\n\n\n I\u2019m relying on Meghan\u2019s opinion here. She asked me if it was supposed to be a regular chocolate chip cookie because it was a bit too salty. If it\u2019s meant to be a salted caramel chocolate chip cookie, I guess the caramel didn\u2019t come through. Not something I\u2019d be going out of my way to try.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n We also got six samples of the park\u2019s alcoholic beverage options to split between us (with an extra two drink vouchers we didn\u2019t use). While I\u2019m not a big theme park drinker and it\u2019s extremely unlikely I\u2019ll buy any of these of my own accord, I was pretty satisfied overall!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: C<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2028Do you like beer? Because this is straight beer. The most beer-tasting beer I\u2019ve ever had. The park\u2019s description of it said it\u2019s \u201cinspired by the popular beer styles of the Grande World Expo era\u201d with \u201cbright citrus aromas.\u201d The can ingredients simply list water, hops, barley, and yeast. If you like IPAs, this is a great option. I\u2019m just looking for a slightly broader flavour profile when I drink beer, I guess. But hey, the can looks awesome!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: C<\/p>\n\n\n\n It\u2019s basically a sweet drink that has vodka. I can\u2019t say I tasted any raspberry or other specific flavours, instead being a more general \u201csweet\u201d taste which completely masked the vodka.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: A<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2028I really enjoyed this! Very sweet and goes down smooth! I think I tried it last year, or the year before as well and it\u2019s a solid option.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: B<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u2028Pretty good. I\u2019m glad there\u2019s a mocktail version available as well.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: C\u2028<\/p>\n\n\n\n This one wasn\u2019t too bad, but just didn\u2019t stand out as much as the others.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Toronto Ty Taste Tier: S<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is one of those dangerous drinks that just tastes like juice. I could drink this all day if it wasn\u2019t alcoholic. Well, and if it came out of a Freestyle machine.<\/p>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\n Updates<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n As I mentioned, this really was more of a \u201cpreview\u201d visit where I was focussed on the food and spending time with my family. Many rides were closed and some coasters were operating with reduced capacity (Leviathan and Wilde Beast for example), which I expect is purely due to maintenance still finishing up their off-season work on the absent trains.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The larger projects the park is working on for 2026 (The DareDeviler, Minebuster, Sweet Spot, and the new KidZville Refresh Centre) are all still in progress. Swing of the Century\u2019s new double seats have been installed, but weren\u2019t available from what I could tell. Antique Carrousel appeared to be missing a few horses, which I\u2019m sure will return once the repainting is complete. I noticed Snoopy\u2019s Space Race was missing gondolas as well, which are also being repainted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The biggest news nugget I received was from Grace Peacock who clarified the status of Speed City Raceway: “We’re not saying ‘permanent,’ but it is closed for 2026.” Take that as you will, but I got the impression it really could go either way. It may return in the future, or it may be demolished. All the park is saying at this time is that the ride will not operate in 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Again, I plan to have a more thorough update (with more photos) after my next visit, once the park is officially open. I\u2019ll also have a short video coming out soon so stay tuned for more updates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Once again, I\u2019d like to thank the park for their excellent hospitality in hosting me, Meghan, my family, and the other \u201cMedia & VIP\u201d guests. It was great to be back in the park and I\u2019m immensely grateful for the opportunity to try so many of the new food and beverage options all at once! From enhanced ride experiences to live entertainment, there\u2019s a lot to look forward to at the park this summer!<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you don\u2019t already have one, you can get a gold pass for the price of silver pass if you buy before May 18. That\u2019s four seasons of fun and access to every park in Six Flags\u2019 Midwest Region for just $89*! There\u2019s also a brand new Pre-K Pass<\/strong><\/a> for guests between the ages of 3-5, available for free to anyone who registers before May 31. Visit canadaswonderland.com<\/strong><\/a> for more information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n *plus applicable fees and taxes<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Canada\u2019s Wonderland graciously invited me and three guests to an exclusive Media & VIP Day on April 26, 2026. I always greatly appreciate the invitation as it gives a chance for me and my loved ones to sample all the new food coming this year, plus early access to the rides and atmosphere of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":402,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[18,28],"class_list":["post-401","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-trip-reports","tag-18","tag-trip-report"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/401","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=401"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/401\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":428,"href":"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/401\/revisions\/428"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/402"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=401"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=401"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=401"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Leviathan's](\"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Leviathan-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"Orange](\"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/AlpenBunting-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"Repainted](\"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Northern-Spirit-768x1024.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Wilde-Knight-Mares-edited-scaled.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"Tray](\"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Food-Tray-2-1024x769.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nSmoked Donair Kabob<\/strong>\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Chicken Drumsticks<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Rice Pilaf\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Beef Burger Slider\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Chickpea Veggie Slider<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Fresh Cut Fries & Popcorn Chicken Bites<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Montreal Smoked Meat Shawarma (Celebration Canada)\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Chicken Tender Taco<\/strong><\/summary>\n
KD Macaroni and Cheese Cone (KidZfest)\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
![\"KD](\"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/KD-Cone-1024x768.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nPork Ribs (Brew & BBQ)<\/strong><\/summary>\n
![\"Pork](\"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Pork-Rib-1024x768.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nTanghulu Fruit<\/strong><\/summary>\n
![\"Tanghulu](\"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Tanghulu-edited-scaled.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nLemon Bar\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Oreo Biscoff Parfait\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Celebration Vanilla Cake\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Chocolate Chip Cookies\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
![\"Selection](\"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Drinks-2-copy-edited-scaled.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nDareDeviler IPA\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
![\"DareDeviler](\"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/DareDeviler-IPA-edited-scaled.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n<\/details>\n\n\n\nFire & Ice Raspberry Vodka Cocktail\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Wondermelon Splash Cider\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Pineapple Punch Cocktail\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Ginger Peach Whiskey<\/strong><\/summary>\n
Blackberry Rum Smash\u2028<\/strong><\/summary>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/TheDareDeviler-1024x576.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"Speed](\"https:\/\/www.wonderlandweekly.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/SpeedCityRacewayfence-1024x576.jpg\")
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